Your Cloud Has a Silver Lining
by I Am District 12's Diamond
Summary: Everyone called him crazy, when he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. They said his mind was cloudy, irrevocably insane. Every last one of them said that his mind was broken, that he was broken. His head was filled with clouds. But she was the only one who saw past that. She was the cloudy girl who could see his silver lining.
1. Prologue

_**A/N:** This is a new story about crazy people, basically. I hope you enjoy reading this story. The first chapter is just the prologue and this will mostly, if not completely be told from Cato's side. This is more like rated T, but it might end up pushing M so I'm just putting that on it. I hope you like this. Please review!_

**. . .**

**Your Cloud Has a Silver Lining**

**. . .**

_Everyone called him crazy, when he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. They said his mind was cloudy, irrevocably insane. Every last one of them said that his mind was broken, that he was broken. His head was filled with clouds. But she was the only one who saw past that. She was the cloudy girl who could see his silver lining._

**. . .**

**Prologue**

When Cato sat in the office of this doctor, he didn't know what to expect. His older brother, Oliver, recommended this doctor to him. He said that the doctor would help. Cato wasn't sure, because no one, apart from his mother and Oliver, wanted to help him work through his problems. Oliver promised that this guy wasn't just after his money; Oliver went to this guy in high school when he was having some problems with his girlfriend. He said he helped him get through it, and now, they were happily married.

The doctor was called Dr Robson. His first name was Emmett. Emmett Robson. It was a friendly name, but Cato, knowing his condition, knew looks could be deceiving. Before he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Cato had been called a handsome man. With his blond hair, striking blue eyes, and muscles to die for, who wouldn't have thought he was handsome? It was different after he was diagnosed. No one thought he was handsome. They just thought of him as the crazy twenty-seven year old, son of James and Maria Miner.

There wasn't a single soul he had met that didn't think he was a little loopy. Sure, his brother and his mother always acted like they thought he was alright, but he knew better than that. Look, just because he was diagnosed as crazy, didn't mean he wasn't smart. They thought he was crazy, just like the rest of them. He told Oliver this once, and he admitted to it. He didn't lie. It was pointless to lie to someone with such a fragile mind. That's why his brother told him to come here.

Cato had been through a lot in his life. He managed to power through the death of his father, James. His father was a kind man; it was his uncle who was off it. His uncle would try to hit him, but James would always stop him. Though, Cato's uncle was much bigger than Cato's James, so it was rare that his father would win the battles.

One night, when Cato was seven, his uncle went particularly far. He hit Maria, Cato's mother. That was when Cato's father snapped. Cato could barely remember much, but he always had a feeling that the night of his father's death was where the beginning of his sane downfall began. He only remembered the blood. And the fact that James won. He killed his uncle in cold-blood, but for a good reason. As far as Cato was concerned, his uncle had it coming. Although, the death of his uncle was a relief, but the following death of James was not. His father had been severely stabbed by his uncle and bled out. They had his funeral a week later.

He sat down on the light green armchair in the small office. In front of him was a small glass coffee table. He wondered if he would end up smashing it. The answer would probably be yes. He glanced in front of him at the man sitting in the white armchair. He was in his late thirties, on leg over the other, wearing a black blazer. The man had black hair and deep brown eyes. He wore square glasses that rested on the tip of his rosy, short nose. This man was Emmett Robson. He held a clipboard in hand and a blue pen in the other. Cato tapped his foot against the ground; a bad habit.

"So, Cato Miner," said Dr Robson. "Your brother spoke fondly of you."

Cato nodded. "Did he also mention that I'm insane?"

Cato expected some smart remark or a simple yes. But he didn't receive that. Dr Robson laughed and shook his head. "Vaguely. He said that you were diagnosed with bipolar disorder nine months ago. How'd that happen?"

"Well," said Cato. "A lot of stuff happened."

" When? What's the main reason, do you think?"

"Um…I guess…I guess I'd say when I almost beat a guy to death."

Dr Robson, who was busy jotting down notes about Cato's personality, stopped writing and raised an eyebrow. "And how exactly did that happen?"

Cato cleared his throat and shook his head. "Obviously, it was nine months ago. I'd just gotten home from this office that I worked at. I came home early. When I walked into the living room, my wife, Glimmer, was with another man."

Dr Robson nodded slowly.

"I actually knew this guy. His name was Marvel. I worked with him; he was my friend. So, I ended up hitting him until my hands hurt so much I had to stop."

After some time in comfortable silence, Dr Robson asked, "Can I ask you something, Cato?"

"Go ahead."

"If your hands didn't hurt, would you have stopped?"

It was silent for a while, before Cato shook his head. "Honestly? No."

"So, the main aspect of your bipolar disorder is anger."

"Yeah," said Cato. "I guess I've always been an angry person."

"Well, this is something that is most necessary to work on in our future session. I could prescribe you some medication, for your—"

"No," stated Cato flatly. "I don't need anything else that will drive me more crazy than I already am."

"So, what are your ideas on getting better?"

"Well, I thought I could try it without the use of any sort of medication," said Cato confidently. "Maybe these sessions would help."

Dr Robson smiled. "I'm glad you're trying to be positive about getting better Cato. I admire that. But these sessions won't help entirely."

Cato nodded his head and rubbed his hands together. "So…what do you recommend I do?"

Dr Robson hummed and readjusted his glasses. "Well, I believe you should get invested in something. Fix a car, paint a portrait. Something that you enjoy. A hobby."

"I never had a hobby," admitted Cato.

"That's a good thing," assured Dr Robson. "You can discover yourself. You can discover a pathway to life that you've never been down before."

"A new direction?" asked Cato.

"Exactly," said Dr Robson. "You just have to put a lot of effort into it."

"I can do that."

Cato sat and pondered over the plan for his brand new life. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when Glimmer cheated on him. They got a divorce. Even if he was given the option, Cato would not return to her. She betrayed him when their marriage was failing. For that, he could never forgive her.

"I ask every patient this, Cato," said Dr Robson. "What do you think life is?"

"What's life?" said Cato. "I guess I've always thought that it was God's little playing field. He gets to control what happens, who lives and who dies, who fails and who thrives."

Dr Robson smiled. "That's a good idea, Cato."

"Well, I'm a loco-crazy wallflower. I notice things. And if I try hard enough, I won't just be some forgotten person wedged between the billions."

Dr Robson nodded his head and jotted down a few more notes. "So, you want to make something of yourself?"

Cato nodded his head. "Yeah, of course I do."

"Did you ever think of how you want to make something of yourself?" asked Dr Robson.

Cato ran a hand through his hair. "Um…well…I just…I just want to make a difference. A difference to one person's life. If I could do that, I'd die happy."

Dr Robson hummed and nodded his head. He tapped a finger against the clipboard. "Here's what I suggest you do. Start something worthwhile. Do something you enjoy, live life. Try getting out of the house more, go to some shows."

"Okay…?"

"My point is, Cato, that you shouldn't be wasting your life in the best of your years. If you set your mind to it, you can make something great of yourself. Better than a wallflower. A ray of sunlight through the storm."

"A silver lining."

"Exactly Cato," said Dr Robson.

"Okay," agreed Cato. "I guess I'll see you next week, Dr Robson."

Cato Miner stood up on light feet, and shook the doctor's hand.

"Call me Emmett," said Dr Emmett Robson. "See you soon Cato."

Cato walked out of the door, feeling the best he had in the last nine months. It was the first time he felt like he could see that ray of sunlight shining through the stormy clouds that inhabited his mind. He felt as if he had an actual shot at a better life. But his life had never panned out the way he wanted it to. He just prayed that, for once, he would find that light.

And he would be more than just a cloudy wallflower.

But what he didn't expect was that cloudy wallflower girl that entered his life was the one that would change everything forever.


	2. Chapter 1: Her

**_A/N:_**_ I really hope you enjoy this chapter. It took me some time. I'm literally begging you here. Could you guys please tell me if I should continue this story by reviewing? I just want to know what people think of it and its worth continuing. So PLEASE tell me what you think and PLEASE review!_

**. . .**

**Your Cloud Has a Silver Lining**

**. . .**

_Everyone called him crazy, when he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. They said his mind was cloudy, irrevocably insane. Every last one of them said that his mind was broken, that he was broken. His head was filled with clouds. But she was the only one who saw past that. She was the cloudy girl who could see his silver lining._

**. . .**

**Chapter 1: Her**

Cato never wanted to disrupt his brother's life. Cato thought that his brother's life was perfect, so he didn't want to walk into it and mess it all up. He loved his brother, he wouldn't ruin his life like he ruined many others. He knew Oliver was very happy with his wife. His wife, Jasmine. They even had a child; a small girl called Nicola. So, he knew that entering his older brother's life at a time when his mental state was off the board, would be a huge mistake.

But Oliver interfered in his life. Cato didn't ask him to help him escape the cages of his own mind. He knocked on the door of his house to tell him to go to Emmett. He visited him in the mental stability centre. He wanted to keep his little brother safe and well. Well, that's what Oliver told him. He didn't believe it. There was no way someone could really care for someone as insane as he was. He knew he was completely off it, but Oliver didn't need to lie to him about it. It hurt Cato that his own brother lied to him about caring for him. If he didn't care for him, he didn't need to say he did. If it was a lie, he didn't need to say it was true.

Oliver offered for Cato to stay with him and his family, but Cato refused. It would ruin their life. He didn't want to ruin any more lives than he had already. So, Cato objected. Then, he had to do something a lot of people his age wished they'd never have to do: He had to move back in with his mother. He didn't want to interfere in her life either. He was planning on finding a new place – not wanting to live in a house that Glimmer had – but Maria wouldn't take no for an answer. She was going to put a roof over her son's head, if he liked it or not.

"Cato, what did the doctor say?"

He strode into the living room of his mother's home. He found Maria sitting on the pale couch, watching some rom-com on the television. Her hair was blonde but her eyes were green; Cato got his father's eyes. Oliver had his father's brown hair and his mother's green eyes, unlike Cato. Yet, it was easy to tell that the two boys were brothers.

"He said I needed a hobby. Something to get invested in," he said.

"Why don't you read a book or something," she suggested. "That could keep you busy for sometime."

All Cato did was nod. He walked out of the room and ascended the stairs in the hallway. He reached the top of the staircase and walked down the hallway. When he reached the study, he slowly opened the door. In this room were shelves with books upon books. Every genre. His mother loved reading and always had a selection for a week. She would read the books over and over countless times until she could quote them. She could. Cato ran his fingertips over the spines of the books. He scanned the shelves with his eyes until he could find one.

His eyes eventually settled on one book, high upon the shelf. He pulled it down and read the title. _The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas_. Written by John Boyne. The cover was a picture of a dark-haired boy sitting on one side of the fence. On the other side of the fence, was a bald boy sitting striped pyjamas.

He flipped the book over and read the blurb on the back.

_The story of 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' is very difficult to describe. Usually we give some clues about the book on the cover, but in this case we think that would spoil the reading of the book. We think it is important that you start to read without knowing what it is about. If you do start to read this book, you will go on a journey with a nine-year-old boy called Bruno. (Though this isn't a book for nine-year-olds.) And sooner or later you will arrive with Bruno at a fence. We hope you never have to cross such a fence._

Cato moved to the desk that was in the middle of the room. He pulled out the single chair and sat down. He placed the book on the desk. He flicked the switch of the small reading lamp, and a beam instantly hit the book. He opened the book, flipping the pages to reach a page. On the page, it said 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas _a fable by _John Boyne'.

He flipped through the few pages at the beginning of the small book and eventually landed on the first page. He immediately read the first paragraph of the thin book.

_Chapter One_

_Bruno Makes a Discovery_

_One afternoon, when Bruno came home from school, he was surprised to find Maria, the family's maid – who always kept her head bowed and never looked up from the carpet – standing in his bedroom, pulling all his belongings out of the wardrobe and packing them in four large wooden crates, even the things he'd hidden at the back that belonged to him and were nobody else's business._

The main character, Cato learned, was nine-year-old Bruno. They lived in Berlin; they were German. Bruno and his family had to move to Poland, forcing Bruno to leave his friends behind. They had to move to Poland because his father was promoted to a Commandant by the Fuehrer, (Bruno pronounced it the Fury,) Adolf Hitler.

In Poland, Bruno befriends Shmuel, a nine-year-old Jewish prisoner of war, who shared his birthday with Bruno. Shmuel was sent with his family to Auschwitz (which Bruno pronounces as Out-With) but they were split up and forced to work there. He visited him nearly every single day, talking to him through the fence of the prison of war. They became best friends, the same people in different situations; one a Polish Jew, and the other a German.

Bruno's mother convinced his father to take them back to Berlin, after a misunderstanding. Father stayed, but Mother, Bruno and his twelve-year-old sister, Gretel, were going to leave for Berlin. As a final adventure, Bruno dressed up in striped pyjamas and went under the fence to help Shmuel find his father, who went missing in camp. The boys were unable to find him, and were mixed up in a group of people going on a march. Neither boy knew where this march would lead. However, they were soon crowded into a gas chamber, which Bruno assumed was a place to keep them dry from the rain until it stopped. The author left the story with Bruno pondering, yet unafraid, in the dark holding hands with Shmuel: "...Despite the chaos that followed, Bruno found that he was still holding Shmuel's hand in his own and nothing in the world would have persuaded him to let it go."

A few years later, Bruno's father returned to the spot that some soldiers found Bruno's clothes. He discovered that the fence wasn't properly connected to the ground. His father eventually pieces together that they gassed Bruno to death. He became depressed, uncaring of his job. The Red Army came to liberate the camp and told him to go with them. He went without complaint, because "he didn't really mind what they did to him anymore".

It was early into the hours of the next day when he managed to finish the book. It was at least three in the morning. He closed the book and calmly stood up. Around midnight, Oliver came over to stay. Cato had no idea why; maybe it was the day or something. He stomped through the hallway, until he reached a room. The guest room in his mother's house. The room which Oliver occupied. Vehemently, he shoved the door open. The sound of Cato's footsteps alone woke Oliver up and he groaned awake. He tapped the light, switching it on. The room was illuminated by a dim glow.

"Cato? What are you…?"

In answer, he threw the book at Oliver's head. Reflexively, Oliver's hands sprung up and grabbed the book. Oliver, blinking, sat up in his bed. He flipped it over and squinted at the cover of the book.

"'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'?"

"Yeah," said Cato. "You've read it, haven't you?"

"W-what?"

"You've read it. You know what happens, right?"

"Yeah, I read it awhile back. Why're you so obsessed with it now?"

"This sort of stuff happened."

"Yeah, you know that. Why now?"

Cato ignored him. "At the beginning, right, you just think Bruno is a naive kid with a powerful father."

Cato marched over to the small desk in the room, yanked out the chair, and plopped down onto it.

"But then he meets Shmuel," said Cato. "A Polish Jew, who's a prisoner of war."

"Cato, go to bed," groaned Oliver. He ran a hand through his brown hair. When his younger brother refused to comply, he groaned. "It just isn't your day, Oliver…"

"At the end," rambled Cato, "I think everyone knows Shmuel is gonna die. But then, Bruno crawls under the fence. John Boyne makes you think that something good might happen but he takes it straight away from you."

"What? The writer does that?"

"Yeah!" confirmed Cato. "Anyway, they go looking for Shmuel's father, but they get caught in this march. They end up in a gas chamber, and they get gassed to death."

"I know. It happened, Cato. There's nothing we can do about it now."

"But this is based on what _they_ did back then. Well, the Fuehrer," he said. "John Boyne shouldn't have wrote about this! This stuff attracts kids! This is a good book, but it's cruel in its nature."

"Fine, I'll call John Boyne about it and tell him to burn all the copies," said Oliver, lazily rolling over.

"But it's not just that," said Cato. "It's the cruelty, the treatment, the injustice—"

"Cato Matthias Miner, _you _are _not_ Ghandi," said Oliver, annoyed. "If you want to make a difference and stop world hunger, try. But one single man needs help to make a difference. And you can't keep relying on me and Mom to help all the time."

"I don't," assured Cato. "I have Thresh and Nyla."

"What I mean is," started Oliver, "don't rely on everyone else around you. They ain't gonna be around forever." He blinked. "Oh, and Nyla called. Thresh and her are having some dinner tomorrow at eight and you're invited. Now sleep."

"But—"

"Go to bed, or I will call you Matthias for life," threatened Oliver.

Cato left the room, despite the fact that he liked his middle name and had no problem with his elder brother calling him that. The reason he left was because he remembered that he didn't want to intrude on his brother's life, and he just did that. And even then, he knew it wouldn't be the first time he would walk into Oliver's life. He just prayed he wouldn't end up ruining it.

**. . .**

Cato strolled into the kitchen in sweats, scratching his nose. His nose twitched at the sweet smell emitting from the stove. The hissing sounds also confirmed his suspicions. He glanced over at Oliver, whose eyes were staring at the thing in front of him. He saw that Oliver was in the middle of cooking…bacon.

"That bacon?" asked Cato.

"No, it's elf brains," Oliver rolled his eyes. "Of course it's bacon."

The bacon was soon cooked properly and then it was plopped onto two different plates. Cato snatched a plate and dropped down into a seat at the kitchen table. There was a great deal of bacon on his plate. He began shovelling it down, barely taking a break to breathe.

"Where's Mom?" asked Cato in between mouthfuls of bacon.

"She went out shopping," explained Oliver.

Cato tilted his head then shook it.

"What?" asked Oliver.

"Did Nyla say why they were having dinner?"

"Dude, it's just dinner with a few friends," said Oliver.

"Yeah, but I'd feel like a third-wheel if it's just those two," explained Cato.

"Then…they might've invited someone else," suggested Oliver.

"Who?" demanded Cato eagerly.

"Hmm…let me check my fricken crystal ball to find out," said Oliver sarcastically. He closed his eyes and threw his arms out. "The crystal ball says!…Ask again later."

Cato remained silent for some time, blinked, then cleared his throat. "Crystal balls aren't magic eight balls."

Oliver dropped his head into his palms and sighed. "Just…go to their place at eight and eat your goddamn food."

**. . .**

Cato Matthias Miner arrived at his best friend's house earlier than expected. He got there when the watch on his thick wrist ticked on 7:55pm. This is where our story really begins. He had no idea what would happen to him when he entered his best friend's house. If he did, he would've went around and did something crazy. He sighed and lifted his large hand and knocked on the sparkling white door. Through the small glass window, he could see a dark figure moving towards the door. Suddenly, the door flew open and Cato was embraced in a quick hug from his oldest friend.

"Hey Cato," said Thresh. His golden-brown eyes twinkled.

"Hey, where's Nyla?" asked Cato.

"Kitchen. How've you been?"

"Better," said Cato. That was true. He used to believe that he could loose his head in a large fit of rage. He still could've, but he could control himself better than that.

"You're not the only guest, though. So don't feel _too_ special." said Thresh, changing the subject.

Cato sighed with relief. His best friend raised an eyebrow. "I didn't want to be a third-wheel."

Thresh laughed. "Don't worry. You won't be."

Cato grinned. "So, who's the guest?"

"You remember Peeta?" asked Thresh.

"Oh, Peeta!" said Cato, snapping his fingers together so they made a clicking noise. He met Peeta about six years before, but he still remembered him as being a great guy. "He was cool. How is he?"

"Well, he's six feet under and dead," explained Thresh. "He died four years ago."

"Oh."

"Yeah." Thresh placed a hand on Cato's shoulder. "His widow is coming. Her name's Katniss."

Cato shrugged Thresh's hand off of his shoulder and glanced through the open kitchen door. He saw Nyla with her red hair flowing freely down her back, scampering around the kitchen like a fox.

"Try not to screw up."

"What do you mean?" asked Cato.

"You sometimes make situations crappy without knowing it."

"Hell do I," said Cato. "I don't do that."

Yeah," said Thresh with an obvious nod. "You do."

Just as he said that, the doorbell rang. Cato saw Nyla run frantically through the room to reach the front door. When she flung the door open, Cato could hear Nyla and the woman exchange pleasantries. Soon enough, the two women walked into the room, happily chattering to each other. It sounded like the two were best friends for years; maybe they were. He glanced over at Thresh and Cato's best friend attempted a smile at him. It didn't look all that good.

The woman that stood in front of Cato had dark brown hair that was tied into a perfect side braid that rested over her shoulder. She had olive skin, and shining grey eyes. She had a very slender frame and thin arms. Her legs were long, but Cato was still taller, by quite some height, too. She wore a black vest and matching dark skinny jeans. She also wore a pair of boots and a gold locket necklace attached around her graceful neck.

"Cato, this is Katniss. Katniss this is Cato."

He looked Katniss up and down. She looked completely normal. Maybe she'd gotten over Peeta's death. Maybe she just tried not to remember him. Maybe Cato was over thinking this.

"You look nice," said Cato.

"Oh. You too, I guess."

"I'm not trying to flirt with you or anything."

"I never said you were."

After some time in silence, Cato couldn't help himself. "So, how'd Peeta die?"

Katniss swallowed and raised an eyebrow at Thresh. In return he shook his head. "House fire. He was baker, so…"

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"Well, I guess he's good now," said Cato. He pointed upwards. "You know…up there…baking…in heaven."

"Actually, I don't believe in heaven," said Katniss with a shake of her head.

"Oh. Well, Valhalla, then."

Katniss tilted her head in a questioning manner.

"Okay!" Nyla clapped her hands together which cut the silence like a knife. "Cato, why don't you…check something out. Katniss, you can take a seat in the dining room."

Katniss smiled and strode through the room into the dining room. Once she was gone, Nyla spun around and pointed at Cato.

Nyla sighed. "Seriously Cato?"

The blond's eyebrows scrunched up together and he tilted his head. "What did I do?"

"Cato, you need to stop doing that," said Thresh.

"Doing what?"

In answer, like Cato's brother had done earlier that day, Thresh dropped his head into his hands and sighed.

Nyla lightly hit Cato over the head and spoke in a hushed tone of voice. "You don't ask a woman how her husband died."

"Sorry! She got married a little young though, didn't she?" whispered Cato. He raised one eyebrow. "What is she? Twenty-four? Twenty-three?"

"Twenty-six," said Nyla. "Almost twenty-seven. Anyway, don't screw up. She's my best friend."

"How come I've never heard of her?" asked Cato.

"Because I don't mention her," said Nyla.

"Why?"

"Because you'd want to meet her and you'd screw up my friendship with her," explained Nyla.

"I try not to," explained Cato. "Honest."

Nyla sighed. "I know that," she said softly. "Try not to be too inappropriate."

"Like what?"

"Don't ask idiotic questions, for one," said Nyla. "Just…try and be, I don't know…_normal_."

At this, Cato ran a hand through his blond hair. He then rolled his eyes and his face broke into a huge grin.

"I'm _insane_," said Cato. He put a finger next to his head and moved it around in a circular motion, 'coo-coo'. "I don't know what normal _is _anymore."

**. . .**

"I can't think of any terrible jokes," said Katniss.

"Wait!" laughed Thresh. "What about this!"

"Oh God…"murmured Nyla.

"Okay," said Thresh. He took a sip of red wine. "A teacher says to a kid?: Give me the opposite of this sentence 'children in the dark make mistakes.'"

Cato grinned.

"So," said Thresh. "The kid says: 'mistakes in the dark make children.'"

There were more snorts to that than there were laughs.

"Not even the crickets liked that one," said Cato.

"Okay, okay!" said Thresh. "I've got another thing."

"Here we go," said Katniss.

"Irony at its best," said Thresh. "Ninety people get Swine Flu and everybody wants to wear a mask. A million people have AIDS and no one wants to wear a condom."

Cato snorted. "C'mon. That's a little offensive, don't you think?"

"Well, I—"

"No, you shush," said Nyla.

They began to eat the rest of the meal in silence. They sat at the mahogany square table in the small dining room. Nyla and Thresh sat at one side of the table, rather close together. However, Cato and Katniss sat opposite them rather far apart. _They're only close together because they're a couple_, Cato reasoned. _That's why she's basically sitting at the end of the table. They're a couple. _They were a couple. Married for two years and going strong. Cato hadn't seen any two people better suited for each other than those two. Apart from his parents.

_How long were Katniss and Peeta married? _Cato tried to figure out. He rationalized that they must've dated through high school then gotten married for a period of time before Peeta died in the tragically horrendous house fire. _The bread obviously wasn't the only thing that got burnt in that fire. _Cato thought he almost smiled then berated himself for thinking such a terrible thought. He was sitting next to Peeta's widow and his mind was thinking of stupid baker puns. _Those buns weren't the only ones that got scorched._

_Stop that!_ The more rational part of Cato's brain told his idiotic and foolish part to stop being such an atrocious and disrespectful person.

"So Cato," Katniss finally spoke up. "I hear you're insane."

Cato swallowed down the chicken he was chewing. He cleared his throat and turned his head. "Well I wouldn't say _insane_."

"Then what would you say?" asked Katniss.

"I prefer pleasantly not right in the head or mentally colourful."

"Well, you're still crazy," said Katniss. "Why are you crazy?"

"That's irrelevant," said Cato. "The real question is, are you looking for a cheaper deal on your car insurance?"

Thresh and Nyla both put their heads in their hands.

Katniss blinked. "What?"

"It…was…a joke," explained Cato.

"Oh."

She hit his arm.

"What was that for?" asked Cato.

"I'm gonna go now," said Katniss. She pushed the chair up and stood up. She looked at Cato expectantly. "Well?"

"Well what?" asked Cato.

"You gonna walk me home or not?"

Katniss looked at him with her arms folded over her chest before she swiftly turned around and began walking out of the room. Cato stood up. At that moment, the front door opened and Katniss began shuffling out of the house in a black coat.

Cato pushed the chairs in and raised an eyebrow. "What the _fuck_ just happened?"

Nyla laughed nervously. "You should go after her. She…kind of…lost her marbles a little after Peeta died."

"What?"

"You're crazy, _you _walk her home," said Nyla. "She wanted _you _to walk her home anyway."

"Fine," relented Cato.

He speedily jogged out of the small house. The path beneath his feet was wet. It had obviously been raining since he arrive at Nyla and Thresh's house. He tried to remember how long he'd actually been there. He tilted his wrist so he could see the time on his watch. 9:57pm. Wasn't late. The street lamps illuminated the dim street, so Cato could see in front of him and where he was going. Far up ahead of him was a figure.

He assumed it was Katniss. He picked up his pace until he was walking along side the dark-haired woman. She barely even glanced at him. After a while of walking, Cato looked to his left. He saw his mother's house in the faint light, and wondered if he should just head home. But he didn't, because he felt this strange need to be around this girl. There was something about her. He was drawn to her like a moth drawn to a candle.

Katniss noticed his gaze. "That's your house?"

"Well, my Mom's, but I live there."

"Oh."

The rest of the walk was in silence, but he didn't think twice about not going home. He was tempted to recommend this girl his therapist, but he didn't; he felt as if that would be crossing a line. Well, it's basically calling someone insane or crazy or loopy, recommending them a therapist. Anyway, that's what Cato thought. He was beginning to lean towards the idea that he wasn't the only one who was mentally disoriented.

Anyhow, Nyla said that Katniss had kind of lost her marbles after Peeta died. Cato didn't blame her. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when he caught his wife cheating on him with his co-worker. Well, after he beat the guy. He didn't know if anyone could blame him for doing what he did. He wasn't entirely sure. He knew people still thought that he was completely off his tots. That he was unbelievably messed up in the head. Or 'mentally colourful' as he had said.

When they reached her house she just stood there for a minute.

"I'm sorry I hit you."

"It's fine."

"It's not. When Peeta died, I went a little weird."

"I totally understand," said Cato. "My wife cheated on me and now I'm loopy."

"Being crazy's not something to be proud of," said Katniss.

"It is if you make the best of it," said Cato.

Suddenly, Katniss embraced him in a hug. "Oh, okay," said Cato.

She then pulled back and lightly hit his arm. "Sorry."

"Fine."

She nodded. "See you around."

"You too."

The cloudy girl walked away, then so did the cloudy boy. Little did they know that they were supposed to be walking toward each other. Because in each other they would find something they could never have found on their own.

Their silver lining.


End file.
